August 23, 2014

To prevent Fukushima from causing the ultimate global catastrophe.

Mitsuhei Murata
Former Ambassador to Switzerland
Executive Director, Japan Society for Global System and Ethics             


(Preface)

Fukushima constitutes a global security issue. Fukashima is out of control and the situation at the site is dangerously worsening. The Japanese government and Tokyo Electric Company(Tepco) have lost credibility both at home and abroad. Nearly 3 and half years after the Accident, Japan is at a loss how best to cope with the current situation. The crisis of Japan as a nation is being tackled with as a crisis of the management of Tepco !
The drastic change of the present faulty system is urgently needed by dint of powerful international cooperation.
The time limit has been attained.


Global security issue

Fukushima has shown that the presence of nuclear reactors itself constitute a security problem, because, if the cooling system of the pool containing used fuel rods gets out of order for more than 3 days, a meltdown could start. This applies to more than 440 nuclear reactors in the world. There is no doubt that Fukushima constitutes a global security issue.
Suffice it to say that we can only pray that no mega earthquake happens at the site to cause the collapse of the unit 4 reactor that could lead to a global catastrophe.

You will be surprised to know how precarious Japan’s future is, in view of the fatal defects of the current system under the leadership of the government and Tokyo Electric Company (TEPCO).
 .
The basic nuclear law does not prescribe clearly where lies the responsibility of assuring the safety of the population. The restart of nuclear reactors is being delayed by the surfacing of this basic problem.

After the Accident, a new nuclear regulatory commission was created to secure its independence from the Ministries concerned. Recently, such rules as that of no return for the staff of the secretariat, are being neglected.

The members of the commission are no longer chosen from those having no prior link with electric companies.
The Commission has publicly denied its responsibility as regards the safety of the residents. It is criticized by the public for concentrating its efforts to realize the restart of nuclear reactors. Under such circumstances, how can nuclear security be assured ?

There is no guarantee that another severe accident will not take place. The next one could be much more destructive. We should remember that, only 20 percent of Fukushima’s airborne radiation leases blew inland, while 80 percent streamed out to sea. If the wind had blown in the opposite direction, Tokyo would have been evacuated.


The problem of contaminated water

The problem of contaminated water has no solution in sight. The situation is worsening. Decommissioning the plant will be impossible until Tepco surmounts the contaminated water crisis.
The plant's water-treatment facility, which can remove all radioactive nuclides except tritium, has been suspended several times and remains problematic.

It has been confirmed that the recently completed bypass that reroutes clean groundwater directly into the Pacific, and underground wells does not contribute to reducing the flow of ground water into the sea.

The attempt to freeze the water in the trenches has been unsuccessful. The water inside the trenches isn't freezing properly because it is circulating inside at higher speeds than the groundwater.
 
The groundwater bypass project to reduce the inflow of the groundwater into the reactors underground has not worked. The amount of the inflow of groundwater from the mountain side is so enormous. The groundwater is thus massively contaminated.

Reliable experts estimate that the daily inflow of contaminated water into the sea amounts to 1000 tons, of which 600 is groundwater. In addition to this, frequent torrential rain falls wash away into the sea radiogenic materials heavily accumulated at the site.

To make the matter worse, global warming seems to have brought about the climate change in Japan. Local downpours of rain causing landslides or mudslides are now so frequent. The latest typhoon has given rise to more than 90 victimes in Hiroshima. Enormous amount of rain washes away radioactive materials of numerous hot spots at the site into the sea.

A year ago, when Tepco removed the debris and rubble of the unit 3, the wind scattered radiogenic materials all around. According to Tepco, the amount of radiation amounted to 400million becquerels. Some experts suspect the number is diminished by 10 times.
 
As it enters a critical phase of the Fukushima Daiichi clean-up, Tepco is contending with low morale among employees, about 3,000 of whom have quit or taken early retirement since the March 2011 disaster. Many have turned their back on nuclear power to take better-paid, less stressful jobs in other parts of the energy industry.

The serious problems of procuring workers and financial resources would be decisively affected by Tokyo Olympic Games that will mobilize a great deal of labor and funds.


Effects of Fukushima crossing the Pacific Ocean

Last January, a renowned peace pacifist sent me an article she had received from someone in California. It refers to a paper attributed to be a “Russian Ministry of Defense Report”. The following excerpt deserves serious attention.
“With experts now estimating that the wave of radiation from Fukushima will be 10-times bigger than all of the radiation from the entire world’s nuclear tests throughout history combined, and with new reports stating that dangerous radiation levels have been detected in snows found in Texas, Colorado and Missouri, this report warns the US, indeed, is going to face the severest consequences of this historic, and seemingly unstoppable, nuclear disaster.
And not just to human beings either is this nuclear disaster unfolding either, this report grimly warns, but also to all biological systems as new reports coming from the United States western coastal areas are now detailing the mass deaths of seals, sea lions, polar bears, bald eagles, sea stars, turtles, king and sockeye salmon, herring, anchovies, and sardines due to Fukushima radiation.”

The report also points out that large amounts of fish, seaweeds, and everything in ocean has been already been polluted, and that these products are the main danger for mankind as they can end up being eaten by people on a massive scale.

What is stated above certainly needs serious verification. In this connection, a survey is being made by an American expert on the consequences of Fukushima being suffered by the West Coast of the United States. It is said that “NATURE” is to publish it next autumn. Its impact will be great.

This report further writes that two “low-level” underground atomic explosions  occurred in the Fukushima disaster zone on 31 December, 2013, the first measuring 5.1 magnitude in intensity, followed by a smaller 3.6 magnitude explosion moments later.

When I read it, I just shivered. Fortunately, I could immediately clarify the situation, by contacting the responsible director of the relevant Ministry. It was earthquakes that had happened nearby, but not at the site, and that, on 31 December, no accident had taken place. If not, it would have been a too shocking news.

Japan is laboring under the consequences of the Accident never experienced by humanity.
 It is now obvious that Japan is seriously in need of an international help.

You can see how vulnerable is Tokyo Olympic Games, being prepared, ignoring the deteriorating situation at the Fukushima Daiichi.


New international system

A new international system is needed to minimize the consequences of nuclear accidents.
Fukushima is revealing the limitations of a government facing a national crisis, its longevity being but of a few years. Nuclear accidents have shown the necessity of coping with their consequences quasi- permanently.
 
By dint of procrastination, the government of a country where a severe nuclear accident has broken out, could avert the crucial duty to make maximum efforts to cope with the accident by an operation of diversion with the collaboration of the media.
I would like to urge the international community to take up this new problem. Since Fukushima is a global security issue, we need a new system to cope with it.

We need a special international system that that obliges governments to carry out certain prescribed duties. I would like to propose the following two minimum requirements.

1. To make maximum efforts to bring the consequences of the accident under control.
2. To concretize international cooperation to mobilize human wisdom on the widest possible scope.


Conclusion

It is the responsibility of the international community to prevent Fukushima from causing the ultimate global catastrophe. The Japanese current system of coping with the consequences of Fukushima is faulty and needs a drastic change. Japan is in need of international solidarity and powerful international cooperation.



responses

(Former Swiss President)

"Dear Mitsuhei Murata
I admire Your enthusiasm and endurance. Congratulations for Your excellent paper.
Please keep up Your good and important work-. Your voice must be heard in Japan!!

Sincerely
Moritz Leuenberger
Former Minister for Transport, Environment, Energy and Communications,
Former President of the Swiss Confederation"


(Professor Ernst von Weizsaecker)

"Thank you, very good and timely paper!
Ernst W."


(Kate Winter,Descendant of Commodore Perry)

"dear mitsuhei,
so true, so well written, so terrifying!!
showed it to a harvard classmate who is a writer, intellectual and former
diplomat.
her comment was that she was already worried but now much more so.
how can japan reverse centuries of not wanting to lose face or admit
mistakes, miss information etc. etc,??
i would so wish that the games would be canceled."


福島が世界の究極の破局に発展するのを防ぐために(邦訳・要旨) 
平成26年8月23日
村田光平
序言

 福島は世界の安全保障問題である。事故現場は制御されておらず危険な情勢の悪化が見られる。日本政府と東電は内外で信用を失っている。事故後3年半以上 を経ても日本は如何に対応すべきか途方に暮れて responseresponseresponseおり、この国家の危機がなんと東電の経営危機として扱われている。現在の事故処理の体制には重大な欠陥 があ り、強力な国際協力によりこれを抜本的に改革することが緊急課題となっている。もはや時間は残されていない。

世界の安全保障問題

 福島は原発の存在そのものが安全保障問題であることを示した。何故ならば、使用済み燃料を収めたプールの冷却システムが3日以上故障すればメルトダウン が起こりうるからである。このことは世界に存在する440基以上の原発について言えることである。福島が世界の安全保障問題であることは疑う余地がない。 現に、世界の究極の破局に通じ得る4号機の崩落をもたらす巨大地震が発生しないよう祈ることしかできないのである。
 政府と東電が主導する現体制の致命的欠陥を認識すれば、日本の将来が如何に危殆(きたい)にさらされているかに驚くであろう。
 原子力基本法は国民の安全を確保する責任の所在を明確に規定していない。
 事故後、原子力規制委員会が関係省庁からの独立させるために設置されたが、その事務局職員の「ノー・リターンルール」は最近無視されている。
 同委員会の委員がこれまで電力会社とつながりのない者から選定することも守られなくなっている。
 同委員会は公然と住民の安全委責任を持たないとの立場を明らかにしている。
 再び過酷事故が起こらないという保証はあり得ない。次に起こる事故は遥かに破壊的なものとなりうる。福島事故の際、風向きのお蔭で8割の放射性物質は海に放出されたが、風向きが逆であったなら東京は避難を余儀なくされたであろうことを忘れてはならない。

汚染水問題

 汚染水問題は全く解決の目途が立っていない。事態は悪化している。トリチウム以外の放射能核種を除去しうる水処理施設は何度も作業の中断を余儀なくされ、問題を抱えている。
 汚染されていない地下水を直接海に流すためのバイパスが最近完成したが、流出水量の減少に貢献していないことが判明した。山側からの地下水の海への流入量は余りにも膨大であり、このようにして地下水は大量に汚染されている。
 トレンチの水を凍らせる試みも成功していない。凍土壁の見通しは暗い。
 信頼できる専門家は毎日海に流出される汚染水は1000トン、内600トンは地下水とみている。これに加え、頻繁に派生する豪雨が現場に多量蓄積した
 放射性物質を海に洗い流している。最近の日本の気候の変化を反映した土砂崩れを齎す局地豪雨の頻発がこれに拍車を加えている。
 1年前、東電が3号機のがれきを撤去した際、放射性物質が風により四方八方に飛散した。東電はその放射線量を4億ベクレルと発表したが、実際はその10倍あったとみる向きもある。
 事故処理が重要な局面を迎える中で東電は職員の低いモラルに悩まされている。
 事故後3000名が退職している。深刻な作業員及び資金確保の問題は東京オリンピックにより深刻な影響を受けることとなろう。

太平洋を越える福島の影響

 2014年1月、カリフォルニアの住民から発信された記事が注目された。
 同記事は「ロシア国防省報告」なるものに言及しているが、次の抜粋が注目される。
[福島から放出された放射線量は全世界の核実験が放出した10倍に及ぶと専門家は見ており、テキサス、コロラド及びミズーリ各州の雪から危険なレヴェルの 放射線量が検出されたとの最近の報道は、米国がこの歴史的な制御困難に見える核惨事の最も厳しい影響に直面するであろうことを警告している。]
 ここに述べられていることは真剣な検証を必要としている。これに関連し、米国西岸地域に及びつつある福島の影響につき米国の専門家による調査が行われており、今秋中にも「NATURE誌」がその結果を掲載するといわれている。大きなインパクトを与えるものと思われる。
 日本は人類が経験したことのない事故がもたらした事態への対応に苦しんでいるが、国際的な支援を深刻に必要としていることは明白である。

新しい国際システム

 福島は原発の過酷事故により国家の危機に直面せしめられた政府の限界を浮き彫りにした。また、一国では事故処理をなしえないことも示された。
 一般に、政府の存続の寿命は数年であるが、原発事故は半永久的な対応を必要とするものである。メディアの協力を得て事故への対応に全力投球する責務から目をそらして、これを先送りするようなことはあってはならない。
 原発の過酷事故については一定の責務を果たすことを義務とする新しい国際システムを設立することを国際社会に提案したい。少なくとも次の2点が求められる。
1.事故対応に最優先で当たり、最大限の努力をする。
2.人類の英知を最大限動員するための国際協力を具体化する。

結語

 福島が世界の究極の破局に発展するのを防ぐことは国際社会の責務である。
 現在の事故処理の体制には重大な欠陥があり、これを抜本的に改革することが緊急課題である。日本は国際連帯と強力な国際協力を必要としている。


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